Let us set aside, for the sake of this essay, various questions concerning the recent health-care bill passed by Congress. We will concede the highly dubious proposition that it will hold down costs; that it will not add hundreds of billions of dollars to the national debt; that it will not lead to the queues … Read more
Whenever the fans of active government need an example of a state-run business that works “without taxpayer subsidy,” more often than not, they’ll trot out the U.S. Postal Service. Well, so much for that: The U.S. Postal Service’s current business model “is not viable” and the mail agency should make deeper job and wage cuts, … Read more
My sometimes sparring partner at America, Michael Sean Winters, has an excellent post on the latest attack against Benedict XVI. Here are the opening two paragraphs, the rest being well worth reading since Winters takes a close look at the documents purported to prove the Holy Father guilty of a “cover-up”: The whole world now … Read more
It’s no secret that China has been practicing gendercide — the mass killing of unborn girls by abortion — for some time. Now this interesting piece in the UK’s Mail Online outlines the problems Chinese society will be facing by 2020, when there will be 30 million more men of marrying age than women. As … Read more
With the upcoming retirement of Justice John Paul Stevens, the media have once again started counting the number of Catholics on the Supreme Court. A recent headline in the New York Times announced, “Stevens, the Only Protestant on the Supreme Court.” Well, so what? The Times article notes that Stevens’ retirement raises the possibility that … Read more
You may have heard that the unwieldy behemoth known as the U.S. Census has been running into some logistical problems lately. Their numbers are That would be my fault. Despite the fact that I have to think hard to figure out which way to go at the end of my driveway (and I mean when … Read more
Hi, I’d planned to post part 3 of Uncle Harry’s Monkey’s Uncle today, but due to a glitch at the source site, I can’t do so. Sorry! I’ll try to post it as soon as I see it’s been fixed.
This little gem has been making the rounds lately, in both a “natural soundtrack” version (below) and a music video version (much less fun, yet included for the sake of comparison): This video got me so excited I had to rush off to classic-retro-games.com right away to familiarize myself with some of the old classics on … Read more
The following advertisement contains an attractive topless man. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Most people have seen this ad for Old Spice by now. The actor, Isaiah Mustafa, now known as “the man your man could smell could like,” has become a cult celebrity, according to Advertising Age. Proctor & Gamble Co. (owner … Read more
In confronting the present crisis, measures to deal justly with individual crimes are essential, yet on their own they are not enough: a new vision is needed, to inspire present and future generations to treasure the gift of our common faith. — Pope Benedict XVI, “Letter to the Irish People” “Tell me the details,” I … Read more
Last week, Peggy Noonan wrote that the media has done the Church a service in its reporting on the sex-abuse scandal. To a certain extent, I agree: Unfortunately, I believe that some in the Church would have continued ignoring or, in some cases, covering up instances of abuse. But the media has gone overboard with its misreporting … Read more
…a sleeping fly covered in dew. “In Sleep we lie all naked and alone, in Sleep we are united at the heart of night and darkness, and we are strange and beautiful asleep; for we are dying the darkness and we know no death.” — Thomas Wolfe I don’t actually know what he means … Read more
The day after she defended Obama as “pro-choice,” as opposed to “pro-abortion,” Sr. Anita Baird, an employee of the Archdiocese of Chicago, apologized for the remark. The relevant portion of the apology is found at LifeSiteNews: “In order to clarify my quote that appeared on LifeSiteNews.com, I am affirming my belief in the teachings of … Read more
A few links for your Friday morning: The sole Protestant member of the Supreme Court may soon be stepping down, which raises the question: Does the religious make-up of the Court make a difference? Despite modern families’ feeling busier than ever before, a recent study shows that parents are actually spending more one-on-one time with … Read more
From the earliest days of religious communities, monks and nuns have practiced sustainable living. Environmental awareness is nothing new among religious, since many congregations ran farms, raised chickens, tended kitchen gardens, and carefully stored winter supplies of potatoes, apples, squash, and the like. Moreover, religious are known to use their resources wisely and modestly, all … Read more
In spite of (and, perhaps, at least a little because of) the best efforts of countless individuals and organizations, the visual mediums of TV and film continue to exert a disproportionate amount of influence on American Society. Which is why this sort of post from First Things’ Wesley J. Smith regarding HBO’s upcoming film on … Read more
This morning, on my way to Baltimore from Boston, this article by Daniel Henninger in the WSJ caught my attention. It’s about the growing new phenomenon in the U.S. of long-term joblessness, and more specifically, the danger of permanently high rates of youth unemployment. According to the latest statistics, the U.S. unemployment rate for workers under … Read more
Over on the Touchstone blog, Russell Moore has an interesting post about “Cremation and a New Kind of Christianity.” Citing Diarmaid MacCulloch’s new book, Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years, Moore notes that one of the greatest cultural shifts in the Church over the last century has been the overwhelming acceptance of cremation, when from its very … Read more
I’ve been accused of being absent-minded, and it is true. Hardly a day goes by that I don’t commit some egregious slip of the mind. Here are some of the most recent: –Going on a car trip without my driver’s license and credit cards. –Leaving the car running in the driveway after I go into … Read more
I’ve been accused of being absent-minded, and it is true. Hardly a day goes by that I don’t commit some egregious slip of the mind. Here are some of the most recent: –Going on a car trip without my driver’s license and credit cards. –Leaving the car running in the driveway after I go into … Read more